1. One week, I’m doing nothing but the same thing I’ve been doing for the past six years… the next, I’m fully submerged in non-stop newness and unforeseen change. Life is a wild ass ride.
2. Moving used to be one of my favorite things to do. I once counted how many times I’d moved. The number was the same as the number of years I’d been alive. I always knew a condo or house was meant for me when I’d start decorating it in my mind before the papers were even signed. Once furniture was arranged and pictures were hung in my imagination, the deal was as good as done. This is all I’ve been doing ever since viewing that villa a few days ago. Except for this time, I don’t actually own any furnishings or art. I don’t even own a bed.
3. It was the middle of an early September night when I arrived, the entirety of my belongings in one bag. The air was thick with moisture, a welcome change after six weeks in the California desert. M met me in the lobby; she’d been here for a week already. We sipped a cup of instant coffee in the dark courtyard, and she introduced me to the fluffy orange hotel cat. Over the years, this Island of the Gods had become the place we went when life had gone off the rails, and we didn’t know our next move. This time was no different. I knew I was in a transition and that I needed to regroup. But what I didn’t know was that I’d just checked into the place I’d call home for the next six years. Or that the ginger kitty who’d followed me up to my room that night would become my best friend.
4. We’re signing the villa papers in three days. I’m looking forward to no longer living with strangers or having to wash my dishes in the shower.
5. Who knew preparing to move into an unfurnished villa when you own nothing was so much work? Instead of packing up our house, we’re having to buy all the things we need for a house.
There are a few reasons why this is particularly interesting here in Bali. The first is that shopping here isn’t nearly as straightforward as it is in America. There are no big box stores here. Each thing we need seems to be tucked into an obscure storefront somewhere that you can only find if you know a guy who knows a guy. The amount of research, inquiring, and window shopping we’ve done in the past week is absurd.
The next is that our current finances do not allow us to furnish an entire villa from scratch all at once. Not only are we shopping in a foreign land, but we’re having to be very strategic about what we buy, all while trying to figure out where to buy it.
Lastly, we travel by way of scooter here, so transporting our purchases home is quite the circus trick. This morning, M drove while I balanced on the back with the contents of our overflowing Ace Hardware cart in the biggest bag I’ve ever seen, strapped around my body.
This is more fun than I’ve had in a really long time. One more sleep until we get the keys.